Maynilad: Water quality back to normal

MANILA, Philippines - Water distributed to households in Las Piñas, Parañaque and Muntinlupa is now free from the odd taste and odor caused by an algal bloom in Laguna Lake, Maynilad Water Services Inc. said yesterday.

“The water quality produced by our treatment facility in the south returned to normal around the last week of June,” said Jennifer Rufo of the company’s investor relations unit.

Some residents in Parañaque, however, said the water  remains turbid.

Rufo said recent rains reduced the growth of algae in the lake that peaked during the summer.

“Raw water from Laguna Lake has improved considerably with the more frequent rains in the area. Also, the operation of our newly installed biological activated filtration – which we installed in our treatment facility to address increased algae presence at Laguna Lake – is now stabilizing,” she said.

During the summer, the concentration of anabaena algae in the Laguna Lake, where it draws water for treatment in its Putatan, Muntinlupa plant, rose to an unprecedented high of 4,000 counts per milliliter as algae tend to multiply rapidly during hot weather.

The company immediately stepped up the treatment of water in its Putatan treatment plant and conducted flushing of malodorous water from its pipelines.

The company also advanced the commissioning of the biological activated filtration system in the Putatan treatment facility to immediately remove the smell and odor lingering in the water supply.

To allow for longer treatment of raw water in the plant, Maynilad also temporarily reduced its water production level in the plant.

“Maynilad is studying other long-term solutions for improving our intake facilities at Laguna Lake, to mitigate further the impact to water quality should a similar increase in algae concentration occur again,” Rufo said.

The company is co-owned by Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and Consunji-controlled DMCI-Holdings Inc.